The Business of Events can thank Anita Mendiratta, Special Advisor to the Secretary General of the United Nations World Tourism Organization, and Dr Helge A Wurdemann, Professor and Chair of Robotics and Head of the Soft Haptics & Robotics Lab at University College London, as final speakers for the UK Policy Forum, taking place on November 8 at IET London: Savoy Place.
Mendiratta will deliver the closing address at the UK Policy Forum and Dr. Wurdemann will join Stephanie Newton from Marketing Manchester and Laura Wilson from VisitAberdeenshire in the How Ambassadors Influence Growth session.
The forum is an official event as part of Governments International Trade Week, taking place from 6 to 10 November 2023. The UK Policy Forum will bring together government officials and political experts from outside the events sector with the aim of increasing communication between industry and government, and developing a policy agenda.
With more than three decades of professional experience, Mendiratta is a trusted advisor to senior leaders in governments, corporations and international organizations as a strategic partner central to effective ideation, innovation, collaboration and conflict resolution.
Since 2020, she has been guiding leaders and educators in the sustainable recovery of travel, tourism and aviation in a post-COVID world and was named one of the ‘Top 25 Spiring Executives in Travel/Hospitality’ in 2023.
Anita Mendiratta said of the event: “Business events are invaluable to the growth of the UK economy and provide a crucial platform not only for job creation and income generation, but also for community engagement, innovation, cross-sector cooperation and national identity. building. When successfully mobilized through strong, committed public-private partnerships, they will unlock huge opportunities for progress in many of Britain’s key sectors and drive positive change among our local communities. I am honored to deliver the closing address at this important Forum, and look forward to hearing from the other speakers and contributors from the political and business events sectors.”
Dr. Wurdemann has played a key role in the research and development of several artificial intelligence and robotics projects at the university and has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, including top papers and journals of the IEEE and ASME, and in proceedings of leading international conferences.
He has also supported prestigious robotics conferences including the International Conference on Robotics and Automation (ICRA) and the International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS) as Associate Editor and Associate VP within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Automation Society Conference Activities Board.
You can view the full program of the event here. Confirmed speakers for the UK Policy Forum include:
- Martin Green CBE, former MD, Eurovision 2023
- Michael Gietzen, CEO, Identity
- Nick Watt, Political Editor, BBC Newsnight
- RT Hon Theresa Villiers, MP, Chair of the Parliamentary Group for All-Party Events
- Senthil Gopinath, CEO of ICCA
- Laura Wilson, Head of Convention Bureau, VisitAberdeenshire
- Stephanie Newton, Head of Business Tourism, Marketing Manchester
- Rachael McGuickin, director of business development, sustainability and transformation at Visit Belfast
- Paul Black, Head of Corporate Events, VisitBritain
- Chris Skeith OBE, Chairman, UKEVENTS
- Chris Gallon, CEO EMEA, Clarion
- Ian Edwards, CEO, ICC Wales and The Celtic Collection